Blyth Meadow

Blyth Meadow (10 hectares) is the largest of the meadows of the Millennium Green. It’s a full mile around the perimeter – we discovered this during our Animal Olympic Event – so a good marker for joggers as well as a lovely remote place to wander. It lies to the east of the main line railway with the Town River and the River Blyth forming the other boundaries. Grazed by cattle during the summer months, it is liable to extensive flooding after periods of prolonged rain in the winter. There are three areas of open water: a cut off meander near Halesworth Lock; another adjacent to Six Arches and a pond on the angle of the ditch that drains Gwen Woolner’s marshes to the west of the railway. In prolonged dry periods they all dry out although the one near Six Arches has some evidence of spring activity. Apart from the ditch that runs through the pond the remainder of the ditch system is largely irrelevant since the deepening of the two rivers in the mid 20th century.
The all weather track runs from the railway underpass through to Six Arches. Footpath Halesworth 14 runs alongside the Town River until it crosses the Town River towards the eastern end of the meadow on its way to Mells and Wenhaston.

There are some fine trees with ancient willows, alder and oak. Barn Owl and Little Owl have both bred.